MNA Culture & Entertainment Desk: The 8th phase of bi-monthly recitation program arranged by Muktobak was held on 14 March evening at Shawkat Osman Auditorium of Central Public Library in Shahabag. At the first part of the program titled ‘Nabo Hariter Gaan’ – fresher artists Aditi Amritaraj, Raihan Haidar Ranjan, Trishna Pal, Eram Mahfuj, Md. Asadujjaman, Omia Omanita and Ashraf Ali Sarkar Likhon recited their melodious poems on love, language, personal feelings, independence, liberation war and so on. In the second part ‘Anusurjer Gaan’ – eminent artiste Ashraful Alam participated in a conversation over the selection of recital elements (poems), ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will pay a state visit to India in April, seven years after her last visit in January 2010, reports news agency. Bangladesh and India on Tuesday issued a joint statement saying Hasina would visit New Delhi from 7 to 10 April. The Bangladesh premier last visited India in January 2010 which was reciprocated by her Indian counterpart in June 2015. “The upcoming visit is expected to further expand the cordial and cooperative relationship between India and Bangladesh and build on the strong ties of friendship and trust between the two leaders,” reads a ...

MNA National Desk: The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended the time by two weeks for issuing a gazette notification for the government on the disciplinary and conduct rules for lower court judges. A SC bench, led by chief justice SK Sinha, passed the order following a time-petition filed by attorney general Mahbubey Alam, reported news agency. The lower judiciary was officially separated in November 2007 but the disciplinary rules for lower court judges are yet to be formulated. The law ministry on 7 May 2015 sent the draft of the rules to the Supreme Court which is similar to the ...

MNA National Desk: A Dhaka court has postponed the hearing of 11 cases of sedition and inciting violence against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia after sudden sickness. “She has suddenly fallen ill, so we have petitioned for more time,” Khaleda Zia’s representative Advocate Sanaullah Miah told to media. Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Kamrul Hossain Mollah granted the petition, postponing the hearings to Mar 28. The court also asked Khaleda to appear before it on 28 March in 11 cases including a sedition case, otherwise the court will cancel her bail. Of the 11 cases, eight cases of inciting violence were filed ...

MNA National Desk: Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists of Dhaka University vandalized the provost’s office room at Bijoy Ekattor Hall as general students tried to resist them from occupying rooms of the hall. The student wing of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League went on the rampage between the midnight past Monday and 4:30am early Tuesday. At about 4:30am, the BCL activists also beat news agency UNB’s university correspondent Imran Hossain, a fourth-year student of mass communication and journalism department of the university and a resident of room 5003 of the dormitory. Imran was taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital ...

MNA International Desk: UK parliament gave its approval Monday for Prime Minister Theresa May to start Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union, even as Scotland signaled its opposition by announcing plans for a fresh independence vote. The House of Lords rejected a last-ditch attempt to amend a bill empowering May to begin Brexit, paving the way for it to become law as early as Tuesday. The prime minister could then trigger Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty at any time, starting two years of talks that will end with Britain becoming the first country to leave the bloc. May’s ...

MNA Sports Desk: Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Monday announced their 16-man squad for the three-match one-day international series against Sri Lanka starting on March 25 at the Dambulla. Bangladesh have drafted in uncapped left-arm spinner Sunzamul Islam and recalled all-rounder Shuvagata Hom to the squad. Mahmudullah remained in the ODI after the BCB president Nazmul Hassan insisted he wouldn’t be dropped from the format. Sunzamul’s inclusion comes on the back of his exceptional form in domestic cricket in the last five seasons. In the recently-concluded domestic first-class competition, he took 25 wickets, including his first 9-wicket haul in an ...

MNA Business Desk: Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCC) on Monday called for reducing VAT to 7 percent from the existing 15 percent and raising non-taxable income ceiling to Tk 3.5 lakh from Tk 2.5 lakh. A DCCI delegation, led by its president Abul Kasem Khan, placed its 49 proposals before National Board of Revenue (NBR) chairman Md Nojibur Rahman at a pre-budget discussion held at the NBR office, reported news agency. The trade body proposed the NBR to introduce smart tax and smart VAT cards. The DCCI president said VAT exemption on internet use will help materialize the ...

MNA Feature Desk: Bangladesh will be looking to make some positive impacts in the second Test against Sri Lanka, which will also be their historic 100th Test, to brush off the disappointment of their first Test loss at Galle. Hosts took 1-0 lead in the ongoing series as Tigers suffered a 259-run loss after they surrendered meekly on the final day at Galle. The first test run in the history of Bangladesh Cricket came from the bat of Mehrab Hossain, who also scored the first ever ODI hundred by an individual player for Bangladesh in 1999. Captained by Naimur Rahman, ...

MNA Science & Technology Desk: Youthopia.bangla, a new youth web portal for knowledge sharing, was launched here on Monday to help build bridges between the dreams of the Bangladeshi youth and the reality of the country by facilitating access to the information required to take informed decisions. The new web portal, intended to improve networking of youth organisations and thus address main challenges, has been initiated by United Nations Volunteers (UNV) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Bangladesh. “This event and the new online platform are very important because they are building a network and a long-term vision, which ...

MNA Culture & Entertainment Desk: Sonakshi Sinha will perform at Grammy Award winner and global pop sensation Justin Bieber’s Purpose World Tour in Mumbai in May, she said on Monday. She will perform as one of the opening acts at the highly anticipated gig, which will be held at the DY Patil Stadium here on May 10. “I am really fond of Justin Bieber’s music and I love how his sound has evolved over the years and today he reaches out to a universal fan base. I’m definitely looking forward to this event,” Sonakshi said in a statement. The 22-year-old ...

MNA Life Style Desk: Some people may think that they can only enjoy life when they already have a lot of money or have a successful career. But that’s not true. You can enjoy your life where you are with what you already have. You can enjoy your life now. Just take a break A decent break doesn’t mean zoning out to the TV or going down the internet rabbit hole. Taking a break that is different from the ordinary and lets you hang loose can do wonders for your sense of fun, escape, and fulfillment. Start the day with ...